The Off-Record

Anonymous. Not neutral. I write about Indian politics, media, and power. Whatever is to be said, will be said!

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Look at that cunning smile on SHO Chandrakant Sahu's face.

A man returned home at 1 AM in Dhamtari, Chhattisgarh, with his wife and small child after a late-night movie show. Chhattisgarh Police stopped the bike. Broken number plate. Routine check.

He showed his movie ticket. Got slapped anyway for recording the interaction on his phone.
Then watch the SHO's face. That smile. Cunning. Unhurried. The smile of a man who knows exactly how this ends.

The Chhattisgarh Police response when the video went viral? He was an outsider. He spoke to his wife in another language which apparently raised suspicion. His tenant details were not registered at the police station.

A child watched his father get slapped at 1 AM on a roadside. And the system's response was to check his rental documents.

That smile did not come from nowhere. It comes from years of knowing the system will protect you. From watching colleagues do worse and walk free. From understanding deep in your bones that the uniform is a shield and the complaint box is a joke.

That child will remember that smile forever!!!!

[SANJAY HEGDE @sanjayuvacha]

Didn't like the millet Pulao? Wanted to try Karims?

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

आदित्यनाथ योगी एक दमनकारी मुख्यमंत्री हैं। और दमनकारी सरकार चला रहे हैं।

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

@Benarasiyaa Kappan Siddiqui says hii to these cowards

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Purvanchal is Purvanchaling. 5KD is not realising the situation.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Khel khatam!!

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Sanjay Nishad is setting the agenda for seat negotiations today, but if the BJP loses, I believe he will use the same playbook to negotiate his way back into the SP alliance.

In my view, Akhilesh Yadav and the SP are capable of carrying the political wave among these communities without relying on leaders like Sanjay Nishad and OP Rajbhar.

The long-term strategy should be to develop credible leadership from within these communities rather than repeatedly depending on leaders who switch alliances when political circumstances change. The SP should build its own social coalition, not outsource it to political middlemen.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Sanjay Nishad is setting the agenda for seat negotiations today, but if the BJP loses, I believe he will use the same playbook to negotiate his way back into the SP alliance.

In my view, Akhilesh Yadav and the SP are capable of carrying the political wave among these communities without relying on leaders like Sanjay Nishad and OP Rajbhar.

The long-term strategy should be to develop credible leadership from within these communities rather than repeatedly depending on leaders who switch alliances when political circumstances change. The SP should build its own social coalition, not outsource it to political middlemen.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Purvanchal is polarised, but not in the way the BJP wanted. It is polarised in exactly the way the Samajwadi Party wanted. And the polarisation is only deepening. At this point, nothing seems capable of stopping it.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Purvanchal me aisa sadma lagega Yogi ko, he wouldn’t have imagined.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

पूरे प्रदेश को पता है कि स्टूलों पर बैठने वाले उपमुख्यमंत्रियों की क्या हैसियत है। अपनी ही सरकार में नाक रगड़ के थक गए हैं, जिनको सरकार चलानी थी वो सब फ़रियादी बने घूम रहे।

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

पूरे प्रदेश को पता है कि स्टूलों पर बैठने वाले उपमुख्यमंत्रियों की क्या हैसियत है। अपनी ही सरकार में नाक रगड़ के थक गए हैं, जिनको सरकार चलानी थी वो सब फ़रियादी बने घूम रहे।

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Bhai Minister are sitting on dharna in their own government

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

@parvezahmadj सचाई और ईमानदारी से बेईमानी अगर किसी सरकार में हुई है तो यही है। बाक़ी सरकारों में चोरी और गुंडागर्दी उसी तरह से होती थी, लेकिन ये सरकार इतनी ईमानदार है की यहाँ चोरी भी ईमानदारी से हुई है।

[Live Law @LiveLawIndia]

When members of a particular community consumed chicken in a boat on the Ganga, they were denied bail for months. However, when members of the majority community consumed liquor on the same sacred river, they were granted bail within hours : Justice Deepak Gupta

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Ministers across the Uttar Pradesh are sitting on Dharna against their own officers.

[दुर्गेश शुक्ल / Durgesh shukla @durgeshjagran]

शहर कोतवाली पहुंचे नगर विकास राज्यमंत्री Rakesh Rathaur l कहा कि जीवन में पहली बार कोतवाली आया हमारे भाई जैसे मित्र को बिठा रखा है l डीएम एसपी से लेकर कोतवाल से छोड़ने के लिए कहा पर किसी ने नहीं सुनी या कहकर रोने लगे मंत्री...@dm_sitapur @myogiadityanath @UPGovt @InfoDeptUP

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Key reasons why a section of Kurmi voters may move away from BJP:

1. Ram Temple-related controversy and erosion of the broader Hindutva narrative. The controversy surrounding allegations of irregularities in Ram Temple-related donations has the potential to puncture the broader Hindutva and nationalist narrative that has historically helped consolidate BJP’s support among sections of non-Yadav OBC voters. For voters who supported BJP on the basis of both identity and governance, such controversies can create a sense of disillusionment.
Absence of a strong Kurmi face within BJP

2. BJP currently lacks a sufficiently strong and organically rooted Kurmi leader who can command the community’s loyalty independently of the party’s broader appeal. In contrast, Lalji Verma’s presence gives the opposition a credible Kurmi face. His influence can potentially neutralise or even outperform multiple BJP Kurmi leaders when it comes to community-level mobilisation.
Growing anti-establishment sentiment among non-Yadav OBCs

3. Recent anti-establishment developments appear to have made sections of non-Yadav OBC voters more politically fluid. These communities can remain strongly aligned with a ruling party while it is perceived to be powerful and electorally dominant, but they can also be among the quickest to reassess their political choice once they sense weakening support or growing dissatisfaction. This makes their loyalty less permanent than it may appear during periods of BJP dominance.
Influence through government employees, teachers and local businesses

4. The community has a significant presence among government teachers, employees and local businesses, giving it an influence that extends beyond individual votes. A dissatisfied government teacher, for instance, can potentially influence a sizeable network of students, parents and colleagues. Similarly, local business networks can facilitate the spread of political sentiment within the community. Therefore, even a relatively small shift in this section can have a multiplier effect at the grassroots level.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

Yaar, I genuinely don’t see the logic behind why Awake is so convinced that he is going to win.

From what I’m hearing on the ground, even his own caste support doesn’t appear to be consolidating behind him. Beyond that, his and his brother’s political image in Rae Bareli is hardly an unknown factor. The episode involving his brother and Aditi Singh is still remembered locally.

Their move to the BJP also doesn’t seem to have resulted in a complete transfer of their old political network. They moved, but a significant section of the cadre and local organisation did not move with them.

Unless there is some ground-level factor I’m completely missing, I just don’t see what the winning arithmetic is supposed to be.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

@tanuj_sarai @vyasa1968 @AditiSinghRBL Of course what I meant was he will loose again.

[The Off-Record @theoffrecord18]

@vyasa1968 Your esteemed brothers may not like hearing this, but it is, nevertheless, a fact.

[रविन्द्र | Ravindra Bisht 🇮🇳 @imravindrabisht]

लोग अक्सर गांधी जी के बारे में ज्यादा जाने बिना ही उन्हें गाली देते हैं। उन्हें अपमानित करने से पहले थोड़ा समय निकालकर उनके जीवन, भारत के स्वतंत्रता संग्राम में उनकी भूमिका और सत्य एवं अहिंसा के उनके विचारों के बारे में पढ़िए।

आप गांधी जी से असहमत हो सकते हैं, उनके फैसलों पर सवाल उठा सकते हैं और उनकी विचारधारा की आलोचना भी कर सकते हैं लेकिन कम से कम उस व्यक्ति के बारे में तो जानिए, जिसकी आप आलोचना कर रहे हैं। 🇮🇳